For some water damage restoration companies, answering the phone may seem common sense. The truth is, we work in a busy industry and even the most efficient industry experts can let this responsibility slip when they become too focused on the other aspects of day to day operations.
When it comes to marketing your company, it costs an estimated $300 to $500 to create a single phone call from a potential client to your company. If you are slow to answer the phone or if you fail to answer the phone altogether, you are literally throwing money away by missing out on the leads you have worked so hard to bring your business.
Don’t Hire Out
We get it, you are an expert in the water damage restoration industry and you want to focus your time and effort on providing the best restoration work possible to your clients. Answering the phone may seem like a distraction from more important tasks, but there are definite downsides to letting someone else answer your phone calls. An answering service simply doesn’t have the proper understanding of your industry or the motivation to provide your callers with the most efficient and comforting phone call experience possible.
Tone Matters
Answering the phone when it rings isn’t enough, how you and your employees answer the phone matters as well. All team members who will be answering phone calls should undergo special training, including the tone they should use and the script they should rely on when engaging with clients over the phone.
The most important thing to remember is that a water damage claim is an emergency, although it may seem like an everyday occurrence to your team. Anyone answering the phone should use a confident and reassuring tone of voice to interact with callers, aiming to be a calming and problem solving voice during their time of need.
Get the Facts During the First Call
All team members who will be answering the phone should be equipped with a questioning form that outlines all of the facts they need to collect before they hang up. In any emergency services industry, efficiency is key to establishing a trusted relationship with your client. Don’t start off on the wrong foot by forgetting to collect the most pertinent information, including the date the loss occurred, the area affected and if the cause has been resolved, during that first phone call.
End the Call on the Right Foot
Before ending the call, review the details of the job with the client. Do not price over the phone, or even provide an estimate, as an accurate estimate can only be provided after someone has seen the extent of the damage. Make sure you provide the caller with an estimate of when someone will arrive on the scene and quickly pass on the necessary information to the team member who will be visiting the home to review the damage.
At More Floods, we provide the training your team needs to make sure your phone is being answered quickly every time it rings and that all phone calls are completed seamlessly. To learn more about the resources provided to all More Floods members, click here or call 1-866-667-3356 to request more information.